STRESS!!!!

This is has been one of the most stressful but fun weeks of my life, but the lord is always there. He is there to support and lift us up in those hard times and he was there for me this week. Usually transfers are really hard for me and I get homesick but the lord kept me busy and helped me through it.

Monday- we just had the classic pday we didn’t do much for pday. I don’t remember anything from Monday haha

Tuesday- Today was the day for Kevin’s baptism, I was soo excited all day. All day we were just preparing stuff for the baptism and getting everything all ready. We went to the church to fill up the font but we didn’t have keys so we had to call someone to run them to us and we were already running late getting it filled, but good things hispanic time is different than our because it was supposed to start at 7 but started at 7:45so we had plenty of time to fill it up. It went really well and it was cool to see how excited he was to be baptized.

Wednesday- We had transfers today which was really fun but soooo stressful, we changed comps. My new comp is elder quinones from Las Vegas. He is awesome, we got put right to work after transfers moving people into new apartments, that’s what we did all day. We went to one of the new apartments for the sisters and it just reeked of weed it was bad ahahah. We have 6 missionaries in a 5 person car so it was really stressful trying to figure out how to get people places. We then went to the church for dinner and sports and it was awesome we got to see bladdimir and he was excited and we had his interview and he is ready. 

Thursday- we wake up to a text from bladdimir saying he can’t get baptized, so I started to freak out and he told us his dad thinks he’s too young to be baptized so we went over to try and talk to his dad but he wasn’t home. We had to call everyone and cancel the baptism it was really sad. Things happen on the lord’s time not ours and it’s been a challenge for me to except that.  We had to help move the elders’ apartment today which was also really stressful, they are a huge apartment with 3 bedrooms for only two of them. We will probs be moving in with them thought so that will be really fun. We didn’t get to do anything other than help move the elders today.

Friday- we woke up to gun shots outside the apartment last night ahahah. One of the elders heard it and just shot up and made sure the door was locked ahahha. We had our first district meeting with the new district and it went really well, we have 8 of us in the district and it’s all Spanish so we do it in Spanish. We then had to move more missionaries and that’s again what we did all day ahhaha. We haven’t been able to visit anyone so hopeful everyone is doing ok. We had to walk and hour in the dark and rain in a sketchy area but it was really fun.​​

Saturday- today we finally got to do some studies which was nice, but we still didn’t have much time to do stuff, we finally got to visit a less-active which was great, his mom who isn’t a member was there and she wants to go to church but he says she isn’t ready ahhaha. We then had to go to the church and help with a baby shower, it was pretty fun hahah.

Sunday- we had church and instead of having us go to class some lady told us we needed to help her clean out the library, we got in the and there were algebra books everywhere and all these love books and Budweiser boxes ahahah. We were at dinner and I was sitting on my chair and it slipped out from underneath me and launched across the room and knocked the family’s plants down I felt soo bad, there was dirt everywhere. We then got to visit cecilio and talk to him, he will be moving for a little which is really sad.\

Sorry this isn’t a very good email but don’t have a ton of time, still stressing ahhaha. Thanks for the love and support.

Elder Barrett

Transfers

This week was pretty sweet, the weather has been cooling down it went from 107 to 89 pretty quick so it’s felt really good outside. I will be staying here in okc for another transfer and will be getting a new comp. Elder quinones, he is an English elder but knows Spanish so I’m excited.

Monday p-day was fun, after p-day we got to visit with Maria who is progressing tons the lesson was soo peaceful and the spirit was so strong. Not much else happened. 

Tuesday the hermanas went to the doctor because one of them has been really sick, they came back and she has mono really bad. They said she will have to stay inside for a month, or might have to go home. We got to give her a priesthood blessing, they are always soo powerful. We then got to visit the Perez family who has an 8 year old son who we were teaching so he can get baptized. The lesson was so hard, I struggled so hard to teach simple principals to this kid and my comp didn’t help me at all. I felt so bad I felt like I had failed the little kid and I felt like the parents didn’t want me to teach him again. It was really hard for me but, the lord was there to comfort me.

Wednesday- I felt my first earthquake during studies on Wednesday. My whole desk shook really hard it was weird, at first I wasn’t sure if I was crazy or if I had just felt an earthquake. All the other missionaries felt it too. We got to visit with a couple people, and then we went on exchanges with the AP's which was soo fun. I got to be with elder maughan from Cali. He played basketball for byui before the mission way cool kid. We taught a couple lesson which was awesome.

Thursday- we had a really good day so today we had a couple of good lessons which was fun and got to see our investigators who we didn’t see last week. so after dinner we decided we would go to bladdimirs and talk to his mom and see if he could be baptized, we got there and it was like oh man here it come so we started and talking and asked if he could be baptized and she goes "yeah" we were like well wow ok, bladdimir had been telling us she had said no to him. Bladdimir is getting baptized on Saturday sooo stoked for him.

Friday- not much happened today sadly we tried seeing lots of people but no one was home, we got to visit Kevin again and I was able to teach a little better, he will be getting baptized on Tuesday.

Saturday- We were on exchanges all day, I got a new elder and we went out and talked to people, it was hard I was struggling to talk to the people and it wasn’t normal for me. I usually can talk and know what to say, but I just couldn’t talk it was soo hard.

Sunday- I love Sundays sooo much, they are so peaceful and I love being able to go to church.

Sorry not much to write about this week. Next week we will have more.

Love,

Elder Barrett

cool beans

This week went sooo fast I really don’t remember too much.

Monday for pday activity we went and had a water fight and played football which was pretty fun, we then got to visit this family who just had two kids baptized and we are working on the parents, it was our first lesson with them and I love them soo much, we were able to connect and have a great lesson. 

Tuesday we had a great language study then got to eat at golden corral with a member, after we went to visit one of our investigators and every time we go we get attack by their little rat dogs, we spend a good 10 minutes trying to get to the door I finally just walked up and had to just scare them off it was kinda fun. We were walking back to the car and they were attacking us again, I’m almost to the car and see two huge pit bulls running at me so I jump on the car ahahah but they were super nice and scared the little dogs off so my comp could get to the car.  We went to cheesecake factory for one of the Hermana’s last days, it was really fun. It was cool to see white people again. We were able to see cecilio which was awesome, he has finished the book of Mormon which is sooo cool. He knows so much, he is still waiting for papers so he can get baptized.

Wednesday we dropped one of the hermanas off at the mission home, it was weird seeing people going home. We got to go to the food bank and do service which is always my favorite, I love doing service. It makes me so happy to serve others! We got to have a lesson with bladdimir, his mom won’t let him get baptized which is really sad. We will try and talk to her and see why she won’t let him.

Thursday we had a normal day just tried lots of people and a couple lesson with less actives.

Friday we had a really good district meeting on using the book of Mormon more and how important it is. We then had the chance to talk to Omar again who we hadn’t been able to see, he is doing good said he would come to church but didn’t. Saturday we had a day full of talking to people and visiting which was awesome we had lesson with a guy and it was sooo peaceful and I could feel the spirit the man was sooo kind and willing to listen I loved it. 

Sunday was great, so half the attendance at church was English people from the stake ahahha. Me and elder Barry got to teach primary again, I loved it but elder Barry didn’t ahahah. The kids were really smart and awesome. We had a great dinner with a member, and she told me to put lime in my eyes because it helps them so I did and it was a terrible idea my eyes hurt so bad but then felt better after ahah. We were visiting with one of our less actives, and she has this chubby little son who is my favorite kid. So we are talking and he walks up to his mom and goes mom “feel my panza I’ve been riding my bike, does it feel smaller" aahhaha PANZA is belly in Spanish. I’ve never laughed soo hard, the kid is soo funny.

love,

Elder Barrett

Changes

This week was really a different week for me, I had lots of struggles, new experiences and changes. this week my comp was sick so we had to stay in for three days and if you know me I can’t sit still for longer than an hour so being inside with not much to do, was sooo hard. I started to get really sad and started to get scared it was so strange. Before the mission that was the one thing that I had worried so much about and it was here and it was happening and it was sooo hard. After three days I couldn’t do it anymore and broke down and just had to plead with the lord to help me, I couldn’t do it anymore. The lord came in and helped me so much, he comforted me and blessed my comp with strength so that we could go out. The lord was there for me and he showed me his love and comfort. 

The next day I was still kinda struggling and I decided to study a little different and it was amazing I was able to feel the spirit and learn and understand more in the scriptures, it was such a blessing. This week we were able to visit with a couple of our investigators, we finally got to see bladdimir after he didn’t come to church last week, he still wants to get baptized so we are working hard on getting him there. He didn’t come to church this week again so have to keep changing his dates. 

We have been visiting Benjamin who is one of our investigators who says he wants to be baptized but won’t read. He says he wants to learn more before he gets baptized and we tell him the way he will learn more is by reading then he keeps telling us he doesn’t need to know the whole book. It’s this cycle of excuses its makes me laugh. 

We got to visit cecilio and hermana salgado last night and hermana just broke down and started crying. She is so sad because we teach about how families are so important and make us so happy but her kids don’t treat her very well. I almost started cry, I took me so long to realize how much my parents did for me and I feel so bad about it. Family is the greatest thing in the world and I’m so grateful for my family. I’m so thankful for a father in heaven that loves me so much that he gave his only son who was perfect to atone for our sins. We need to appreciate our families more, I wish I had before the mission. Thank you for all the love and support.

And yes I’m gaining some weight but I lost some the other day from riding bikes all day in the 105 degree weather.

Noice

Well it’s been a week out here. We have a pet cat his name is Reggie after my fish that died before I left. He chills way hard on our deck, I haven’t petted him yet but he’s my pal. I also had a roach chillin way hard on my desk which wasn’t cool, one because he’s a roach and second he isn’t paying rent so. 

Tuesday- we emailed for a little then went to read with a member and she was being so rough on my Spanish it was good but hard at the same time. We then had to go bless a house because there were ghosts or something in the house, it was kinda weird but she fed us tacos so that was dope. We got to visit with some of our investigators and read with them, they all struggle to read so we read with them a lot. 

Wednesday- there was a storm during the night that was really cool, but when we wake up it is super humid. I caught a toad today which made me really happy. We got in with one of our investigators finally and it was awesome, but then during the lesson the sisters called and some crazy person was saying stuff to them so we had to end the lesson and go talk to the sisters.

Thursday- we planned like all day which isn’t very fun, we got out of the house at 4. We went out trying potentials and met some really great people, we were talking to a guy and some crazy white guy drove by and started swearing at us and stuff it was funny. We had a really good dinner at Rosas. We visited with cecilio and hrma selgado and it was a really good lesson. She started crying and telling us how much she loves and appreciates us. She says we are here angels and her kids. They are my favorite people and make me feel at home when I’m in their home. They are soo strong.

Friday- we had zone training meeting. It was really good we got lots of great inspiration and guidance on how we can be better at talking to everyone and how to talk to people. We have some amazing missionaries out here. We got to go to taste of china which is my favorite ahhah.  We went and rode bikes to and investigators who said he was going to be there but wasn’t so that was salty but then we got to meet this other lady who was really cool and said we could come back. We tried to have an English class and had people who said they would come but like most people here they didn’t show up ahaha. 

Saturday- we went to pick up elder butterfield in the north. He is leaving in a couple weeks so he is a traveling missionary, and just goes around to all the areas. We got to go to a baptism and it was soo cool. I was able to teach the lady once and she is soo cool she had to wait a couple months to get baptized so it was cool to see it actually happen. We then went and talked to tons of people and met tons of people unfortunately most of them were drunk. We got to meet with the Vargas’s and talked with them. They are trying to go to the temple so we have been trying to prep them for that.

Sunday- the sisters took the car today because one of the sisters was sick and had to go to the ER. She has pneumonia which is too bad. Church was good bladdimir said he was going to come but never showed up so we have to change his date again. After church we were talking to this lady and she goes "I thought you were jehovas witness and I was about to be really mean to you" ahahhah I started laughing but she said we could come back.

  

not much time to write but love you all.